37 Weeks

Here I am at 37 weeks! It's a pretty cute baby belly if I do say so myself! I have been putting off updating on pregnancy because the past few weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind and we've been in and out of dr. offices, the hospital, and exam rooms, but now things have settled down a bit and we're in the home stretch! 

A couple weeks ago I had gone in to see my Dr because my blood pressure had been high. She sent me for blood work, a non-stress test - which is when they listen to baby's heartbeat and check the movements, and an ultrasound. Everything seemed to be going well and I was excited because it was the day of my baby shower! The shower went really well and was a lot of fun! ...at least that is what all the girls who attended told me. Unfortunately just as I was getting ready to leave the house for the party, literally 20 minutes before it started, my doctor called and told me I had to head to the hospital right now for more tests and to get results. She told me to be prepared to be admitted and possibly sent to Edmonton to be monitored. Fort McMurray is not properly equipped to deal with premature babies. So because of this I was unable to attend my own shower and it was too late to cancel. I was pretty upset about not being able to go but I am very grateful that my friends were all very understanding, especially the girl who was hosting! It was a long night and we were at the hospital for about 6 hours until they decided to send us home and keep close tabs on me from there. 

For the next week I had blood drawn about 5 times and NST's done every other day. I am considered high risk because I have developed pre-eclampsia which basically means my blood pressure is too high and I have protein in my urine which is not normal. I also have what is called polyhydramnios, which is a fancy way of saying there is too much amniotic fluid around the baby. And lastly, I have really high urate levels which continue to climb, indicating that my kidneys just are not functioning how they should and all this puts me at high risk for complications during labour, especially if my water breaks. 

Since then I have been having NST's and bloodwork at least twice a week, and an ultrasound once a week to check the baby and the fluid levels. They are keeping a close eye on me to make sure both me and baby stay healthy. The chances of us having to go to Edmonton are now virtually gone which I am very happy about, and today after my NST I got a phone call to tell me that on Monday I get to sign papers and schedule an induction! The end is in sight! It has been a pretty stressful few weeks and will be until I have this baby but I try to remember that there are a lot of people who are definitely a lot worse off than I am and I should be grateful that I have good doctors who personally take time to call and check up on me. 

I am also very grateful for a pretty amazing husband. Poor Cody has been working straight nights and will be doing so until the baby comes. Between working, cooking, cleaning, and coming to almost all my appts he is pretty stressed out and looking forward to a bit of a break from work when the baby is born. He definitely deserves it.